1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to sun visors for vehicles and, more particularly, to sun visors having a two piece core.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is well known to provide a sun visor for the windshield of a vehicle, wherein the sun visor is mounted on a roof panel of the vehicle for movement between a storage position adjacent the vehicle headliner, a first use position adjacent the windshield, and a second use position adjacent a side-door window opening.
One known sun visor assembly includes an inner core board of pressed wood attached to a molded plastic extender blade that slides into an out of the sun visor assembly for extending the sun blocking protection of the sun visor. An outer covering of foam-backed cloth, which is adhered to a kraft-paper foundation, is folded over the core board and is edge sewn along a seam circumjacent the periphery of the core board. A separate pin member is secured to the foundation and is used to secure the sun visor in a retainer clip on the vehicle headliner, as is known in the art.
Another known sun visor assembly includes a molded plastic inner core member and an outer covering assembly folded over the plastic core in the manner previously described. The plastic core member is provided with an extender blade for extending the sun blocking protection of the sun visor and an integrally formed pin member to secure the sun visor to the vehicle headliner.
Vehicles having large windshields, such as transport trucks or the like, require relatively long sun visor assemblies. Therefore, a relatively long inner core is required to satisfactorily support the sun visor foundation. However, simply lengthening the inner core of known sun visor assemblies to accommodate the length of the foundation does not provide adequate structural integrity to resist deformation of the sun visor assembly. Unless adequately supported, a sun visor assembly is subject to deformation from the torsional forces imposed by a vehicle occupant moving the sun visor from the storage position to one of the use positions. For example, a relatively long sun visor assembly employing a clip member formed independent of the core member, undesirably deforms proximate the clip member as the sun visor is rotated from the storage position to first use position. In another example, a relatively long sun visor assembly employing a molded plastic core member undesirably deforms through the core""s cross section, due to the flexibility of the plastic. Therefore, a sun visor core is required for use with relatively long sun visor assemblies to substantially prevent the sun visor assembly from deforming during use.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a sun visor assembly is provided that includes an inner core having a stiffening member and a frame member. The frame member includes an integrally formed pin member to detachably secure the sun visor to a retainer clip. A foundation is folded over the core and is fastened to itself to secure the core substantially within the foundation. At least a portion of the foundation extends beyond a peripheral edge of the core to define an edge of the sun visor. The sun visor assembly further includes an upholstery cover covering the foundation that forms an exterior surface of the sun visor.
The stiffening member may be substantially longer than the frame member and/or substantially similar in length to the foundation. This advantageously allows the frame member to be substantially shorter than overall length of the core, providing significant savings in material. The sun visor core of the present invention is advantageously suited for use in a sun visor assembly having a relatively long length, without undesirably compromising the structural integrity of the sun visor assembly.
Various additional aspects and advantages of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, when read in light of the accompanying drawings.